Faustin Nsabumukunzi, of Bridgehampton, concealed role in Rwanda genocide while seeking citizenship, federal prosecutors say

A Bridgehampton resident concealed his leadership role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide on immigration applications, according to federal prosecutors, who charged the man with visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud.

Faustin Nsabumukunzi ordered killings and encouraged rapes as a leader in local government during the 1994 genocide, prosecutors with the Eastern District of New York said in court papers and at Nsabumukunzi’s arraignment in Central Islip.

Nsabumukunzi, 65, pleaded not guilty to the charges during an appearance before U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert, who released him on $250,000 bond. Nsabumukunzi was arrested at his Bridgehampton home early Thursday, prosecutors said.

According to the indictment, Nsabumukunzi was a "Sector Councilor" — a local government official — who used his leadership role to direct Hutus to kill Tutsis during the 1994 genocide. He also encouraged Hutu men to rape Tutsi women, prosecutors said in court papers.

An estimated 800,000 Tutsis were killed during a three-month rampage of rape, murder and mutilation.

Nsabumukunzi’s attorney, Evan Sugar of the Federal Defenders, said his client was a victim of the genocide, not a perpetrator.

"Mr. Nsabumukunzi is a law-abiding beekeeper and gardener who has lived on Long Island for more than two decades," Sugar said in a statement distributed to reporters before the hearing. "He was a victim of the Rwandan genocide who lost scores of family members and friends to the violence. Mr. Nsabumukunzi was rightfully granted refugee status and lawful permanent residence in this country. We will fight these 30-year-old allegations to the contrary, and Mr. Nsabumukunzi maintains his innocence."

Nsabumukunzi works as a gardener at the East End estate of a private equity investor, Sugar said. Nsabumukunzi’s journey from Rwanda to Long Island was detailed in a 2006 New York Times article that said he owned a general store, a movie theater and a 20-acre farm, where he kept bees and produced honey.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha Alessi asked Seybert to order Nsabumukunzi held without bail, calling the defendant a flight risk and a danger to the community.

U.S. officials were notified about Nsabumukunzi’s alleged role in the genocide in 2017, Alessi said, explaining that it took eight years to bring charges because it was difficult to obtain documents from Rwanda detailing his involvement. Witnesses interviewed in Rwanda by U.S. investigators, she said, confirmed Nsabumukunzi’s role in the genocide.

Prosecutors said Nsabumukunzi assured Tutsis at public meetings that they would be protected. But in private conversations with members of the Hutu tribe, Nsabumukunzi urged others to kill Tutsis. He also helped to set up roadblocks to detain and kill Tutsis when they left their homes.

In April 1994, according to court papers, Nsabumukunzi directed armed Hutu men to kill Tutsis who had gathered on the grounds of the office where he worked. During the attack, Nsabumukunzi struck Tutsis on the head with a club.

Nsabumukunzi also encouraged Hutu men to rape Tutsi women, prosecutors said. He had been convicted of genocide in absentia by a Rwanda court and faces life in prison if he is deported to his native country.

The court papers said Nsabumukunzi applied for refugee resettlement in the United States in 2003 and received a green card in November 2007. They allege he lied to U.S. immigration officials by falsely denying he had engaged in genocide.

Nsabumukunzi repeated those lies on subsequent applications for a green card and naturalization, officials said.

Sugar told Seybert that the United Nations’ International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda did not bring charges against the defendant. He questioned why it took the government so long to bring its case against Nsabumukunzi.

"It’s a big gap," Seybert agreed.

Sugar said the defendant's employer agreed to post a $100,000 bond for Nsabumukunzi’s release, and that the defendant’s son, Thierry Nsabumukunzi, would also sign for the bond. Seybert ultimately agreed to release Faustin Nsabumukunzi on a $250,000 bond. She ordered him not to leave Suffolk County and said he could leave his home only for work, religious services, medical appointments and meetings with his legal team.

Nsabumukunzi faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted on all counts.